TSA Employee Plants a Bag of White Powder on Traveler...As a 'Joke'

[tekisui]

Source: philly.com

In the tense new world of air travel, we're stripped of shoes, told not to take too much shampoo on board, frowned on if we crack a smile.

The last thing we expect is a joke from a Transportation Security Administration screener - particularly one this stupid.

Rebecca Solomon is 22 and a student at the University of Michigan, and on Jan. 5 she was flying back to school after holiday break. She made sure she arrived at Philadelphia International Airport 90 minutes before takeoff, given the new regulations.

She would be flying into Detroit on Northwest Airlines, the same city and carrier involved in the attempted bombing on Christmas, just 10 days before. She was tense.

What happened to her lasted only 20 seconds, but she says they were the longest 20 seconds of her life.

After pulling her laptop out of her carry-on bag, sliding the items through the scanning machines, and walking through a detector, she went to collect her things.

A TSA worker was staring at her. He motioned her toward him.

Then he pulled a small, clear plastic bag from her carry-on - the sort of baggie that a pair of earrings might come in. Inside the bag was fine, white powder.

She remembers his words: "Where did you get it?"

Two thoughts came to her in a jumble: A terrorist was using her to sneak bomb-detonating materials on the plane. Or a drug dealer had made her an unwitting mule, planting coke or some other trouble in her bag while she wasn't looking.

She'd left her carry-on by her feet as she handed her license and boarding pass to a security agent at the beginning of the line.

Answer truthfully, the TSA worker informed her, and everything will be OK.

Solomon, 5-foot-3 and traveling alone, looked up at the man in the black shirt and fought back tears.

Put yourself in her place and count out 20 seconds. Her heart pounded. She started to sweat. She panicked at having to explain something she couldn't.

Now picture her expression as the TSA employee started to smile.

Just kidding, he said. He waved the baggie. It was his.

And so she collected her things, stunned, and the tears began to fall.

more: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/20100121_Daniel_Rubin__It_was_no_joke_at_security_gate.html

___________________________________________________________________________________
ETA: The person is no longer working with the TSA.

[phantom power]

1. Jobs involving authority attract bullies.

Just one more side benefit of building a police state.

[rusty fender]

2. I hope that the TSA worker

gets fired and charged with a crime. What a gargantuan asshole!

[MineralMan]

5. He's already gone, as you'd know if the OP had included

that information from the story at the link. There are moronic people in all jobs. This one no longer has his job.

[MineralMan]

3. That person is no longer a TSA employee.

That information is in the story, but omitted in the OP. There are morons in all occupations. This moron lost his job.

[Flying Dream Blues]

4. Is unbelievable still a word? nt

[MineralMan]

9. Nothing unbelievable about it. Have you never met a moron

who had a job? This one no longer has his job.

[Flying Dream Blues]

22. You don't find the means by which he lost his job a bit

shocking? Most people are fired for reasons that don't include trying to "jokingly" frame someone as a terrorist, drug smuggler or similar. And I don't have anything against the TSA; in most cases they are courteous and professional. I have run into a few notable exceptions, but for the most part I understand they are just doing their job like the rest of us.

I really didn't see why you jumped on my post like that, but peace.
:hi:

[blogslut]

6. What a sadistic bastard

The update to the story says the worker "no longer employed" by the TSA. Good.

[MineralMan]

7. And why did you omit the information that this TSA

employee is not longer employed by the TSA? There it is, right at the bottom of your link. Can you answer that for me, please?

[tekisui]

8. I have been warned on posting limits before.

It wasn't nefarious. I'll update the OP, although you have pointed it out 3 times now.

[MineralMan]

10. You could have typed that information as a comment, rather than

quoting it. Are you sure you're just not TSA bashing, here? The TSA has apparently fired this guy, since what he did is against their regulations.

[tekisui]

11. I don't have a reason to bash the TSA.

You are reading way more into it than what is there. I expect people to have the intelligence and the ability to click a link and read on. Jeeezuz, posting a link to a story is not TSA bashing. It is fucked up what this idiot did to this girl, and worth knowing about.

It does raise the question of who it is working for the TSA, and what kind of screening they undergo.

[Raineyb]

16. Considering how the TSA behaves does one really need a reason to

"bash" them?

Really as an agency they're ass backwards and bloody useless but the make certain people "feel" safe. Whether they actually DO anything is something else entirely.

[rcrush]

25. If someone wants to bash the TSA I'm gonna have a hard time feeling bad for the TSA

Screw the TSA

[ck4829]

12. K&R. Spread this around EVERYWHERE.

[derby378]

13. K&R! Bookmarked!

:grr:

[KittyWampus]

14. thanks for the edit at the end! And I could imagine someone having a heart attack

or stroke from the stress.

Especially if you are the sort afraid of flying and/or going to an important meeting or funeral.

[MineralMan]

15. Those who are afraid of the TSA should come to Minnesota

and fly out of MSP. The TSA here is very helpful and most of them are smiling. In both terminals.

In fact, in all my times flying, I've encountered nothing from the TSA that has been negative. Some bored looks, but that's about it.

[JoeyT]

17. Excellent.

It's the "Nothing bad happens to me, therefore nothing bad happens to anyone." argument.
The same argument used to defend absolutely every violation of rights (civil and otherwise) that ever happened.

[MineralMan]

18. When was your last flight?

Seriously...when did you last fly on a commercial airline? Answer that and I'll continue discussing the issue with you.

[JoeyT]

24. Two weeks ago.

You were saying?

[izquierdista]

19. Is decapitation an allowable reprimand?

[Gormy Cuss]

20. The incident happened on Jan. 5. The column appeared Jan. 21

and the TSA spokesperson didn't say anything about the employee's status, citing privacy laws. On Jan.22 came the update that the person is no longer employed by the TSA.

Makes me wonder if he was still a TSA employee yesterday when the column appeared.

[montanto]

21. Me? I'd have gone to jail after having

clawed that fuckers balls off. I hope she does in her way. Just another piece of evidence that being innocent is not enough to keep you out of trouble. "Got nothing to hide, got nothing to fear" My republican dad always says.

[MindPilot]

23. In her own words...

http://michigandaily.com/content/personal-statement

"I immediately told him I had no idea where the bag came from and that I hadn’t left my bags unattended— a cardinal sin in airport security. He let me stutter through an explanation for the longest minute of my life. Tears streamed down my face as I pleaded with him to understand that I’d never seen this baggie before.

But as I emotionally tried to explain that I couldn’t explain, he started to smile, an odd reaction to such a monumental find in my things. Then he waved the baggie at me and told me he was kidding, that I should’ve seen the look on my face."


Ironic that the government agency whose primary function is to invade our privacy, protects the criminals in its employ citing "privacy concerns".